Touring Sweden in an old Volvo

[skippyfox]

Reading through this thread has got me thinking. Certainly beats 2 weeks in Lanzarote. Wife's destination of choice... probably due to 3 of her sisters live there

[john.wigley]

Originally Posted by skippyfox

Reading through this thread has got me thinking. Certainly beats 2 weeks in Lanzarote. Wife's destination of choice... probably due to 3 of her sisters live there

Never been to Lanzarote, 'skippyfox', but have spent many happy times in Sweden. Obviously, they are two quite different destinations - We don't enjoy particularly hot weather and the Swedish climate suits us both very well.

Like most countries, there is a difference between being 'tourists' and 'locals'. We first went to Sweden with the VOC in the mid-eighties and have since returned independently more times than I can remember.

We have also made some very good friends along the way, and have from time to time stayed with them and they with us. Most Swedes are possessed of a natural reserve, but if you can get beneath that, you will find them to be some of the most friendly and helpful people around. Although this allows one to experience the country more as a local than as a tourist, it can also on occasion lead to some 'interesting' situations arising !

Take time for instance; you need to be very clear what you mean when arranging to meet someone. To us, 'I'll see you at half-seven', means half-past seven, while to a Swede it indicates half-past six i.e. half of or to seven. To them, half-past seven is translated as halv otta, literally, 'half-eight'. It stems from how they tell the time and it took us a while to cotton on to this. In order to avoid confusion, it is best all round to stick to the 24-hour clock - there can be no ambiguity about 06:30, 07:30, 18:30 or 19:30, but get it wrong and you could miss your train!

Regards, John.